RS&C Contributes To The Revitalization of Ventura

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Written by Rogers Sheffield & Campbell

Published: 11 September 2014

Rogers, Sheffield & Campbell, LLP (RS&C) recently assisted a client in the City of Ventura gain approval from the Ventura City Council for an entitlement project on a six acre site which included a change in zoning from industrial to mixed use, 125 condominiums, 7,300 SF of commercial, a publicly accessible park, and two new public streets. We are thankful for the opportunity to contribute to community development projects like this.

Residents of Ventura’s west side got an update this week from the city on housig developments planned for their area.Five projects in the works for the area will add about 500 housing units, city Community Development Director Jeff Lambert told residents at Wednesday’s Westside Community Council meeting.

The projects are in various stages of development, from already built to seeking city approval of initial design plans.

Furthest along is the Cannery complex between Garden Street and Ventura Avenue. The 78-unit project is under construction and expected to go on the market soon, Lambert said.

Another project in the pipeline is Westside Renaissance, on the north end of Ventura Avenue next to School Canyon Road. The city ha approved construction of 50 affordable senior apartments, 120 single-family homes and 36 townhome there, Lambert said. He predicted that grading could start in the next six months.

Two side-by-side apartment complexes have been approved for Ventura Avenue close to Stanley Avenue and Harry A. Lyon Park, Lambert said. One, New Urban Venture, calls for 80 condominiums with 2,000 feet of commercial space. The other is for 125 apartments, he said.

Finally the city’s housing authority is seeking approval for a revamp of the Westview Village public housing project that would demolish 188 units there an build 320 new ones.

Lambert said although those and other developments planned throughout the city seem like a lot, many have been on the books for a long time. Some could take years to develop, while others may not happen at all, he said.

“It’s not as intense as it appears,” he said. “They’re not all going to happen at the same time.”

Residents at the meeting asked whether the city’s infrastructure on the west side can support the developments. Council member Lori Steinhauer said water supplies are a potential concern.

Lambert said the city is conducting a sewer project along Ventura Avenue that will be followed by street improvements. He said that the city’s projection for water use already have accounted for many of the planned developments and that there is enough supply for the demand. The Ventura City Council is tracking the issue, he said.

Also on Wednesday, Lambert called on residents of the neighborhood to “stay engaged” in contributing their ideas for revising the city’s 2005 general plan. The process is expected to start in October and finish by the end of next year.

The Westside Community Council has put forward a vision for development on the area that Lambert said would be incorporated into the general-plan discussions.

Group Chairman Art Troll said the vision was created from community input over the past 20 years and includes a desire for more parks, a circulation plan to address traffic issues, access to hiking trails and the Ventura River, and restriction of the development to three stories or fewer.

Troll said the community does not completely oppose development but wants no more than about 80 new units and also wants to ensure retention of commercial and industrial sites that provide local jobs.

“We do have to have so growth,” he said, but, “we can only take so much.”

This article was written by Claudia Boyd-Barrett and was published in September 4, 2014 edition of the Ventura County Star (you need to be a subscriber to open the original online version.)

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Rogers, Sheffield & Campbell, LLP primarily serves individuals, families and businesses up and down California's Central Coast and North Los Angeles County, including many Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, and Ventura County communities.